194 THE ENTOMOLOGIST, 



" approaches." Meanwhile, the " Spirit Museum " is to be 

 transferred from its present position on this site, and re-erected 

 on the westward frontage facing Queen's Gate — that is to say, 

 exactly where the Entomological Section at present ends — 

 despite the specially inflammable nature of its contents, hitherto 

 purposely isolated from the main building. No wonder the 

 Trustees are up in arms ! No wonder that in a last appeal on 

 the subject to the Office of Works they deprecate the " attempt 

 to accommodate three important institutions, the Natural History 

 Museum, the Imperial College of Science, and a much enlarged 

 Science Museum, on so restricted a site," as showing " a want of 

 appreciation of the inevitable future of these institutions," all 

 three of which must needs be "hampered in their growth " ! For 

 we entomologists are not the only naturalists who will suffer by 

 this astonishing attempt " to squeeze a quart into a pint pot," 

 even though that pint be imperial ! As naturalists we have no 

 quarrel with the chemists or any other scientists for whom the 

 new Museum is designed. But we do protest most emphatically 

 against the appropriation of Natural History Museum ground 

 for alien purposes, and deeply do we regret that for the moment 

 we have no entomological members of Parliament, as was the 

 ease a short time ago, to voice our arguments and ventilate our 

 grievances. Meanwhile, a very widely signed memorial to the 

 Government has been prepared in London with the co-operation 

 of the leading Universities, and resolutions have been passed by 

 the Linnean, the Entomological, and the Royal Horticultural 

 Societies, stating the case for the appellants with unmistakable 

 precision. Something has been said, too, about approaching the 

 Prime Minister, the Minister for Education, and the First Com- 

 missioner of Works on the subject, and the Entomological Society, 

 at all events, has asked to be represented if any such deputa- 

 tion is formed. For, at the time of writing, it is abundantly 

 clear that the Department responsible for the present undesirable 

 scheme has considered only one side of the question. We trust, 

 therefore, that no effort will be spared to repair the omission, 

 and by such means avert perhaps an irreparable injury being 

 done to our particular branch of science. So far, we have not 

 heard one "unofficial" voice raised in favour of the Govern- 

 ment proposal. On the contrary, Sir Henry Roscoe himself 

 appears to be quite dissatisfied with the space allotted the 

 Science Museum, while no single word of encouragement has 

 greeted the Office of Works scheme in the Press, scientific or 

 otherwise. 



H. R.-B. 



